I Think I've Received A Spam Message, What Do I Do? (iPhone)

SPAM messages can be used by criminals for illegal purposes – i.e. trying to get you to provide them with personal information that can be used for their gain. A spammer will typically send out millions of messages in a day in the hope that a few people respond.

It is important to note that the vast majority of messages you receive on Recon are sent from profiles created by other members, with the exception of the occasional messages sent from the Recon Team. Always check the message sender’s details carefully – especially if the offer sounds too good to be true.

Here's some pointers to help you enjoy your time on Recon:

Recon will never ask you to send your personal details or money.

All messages from Recon to your message centre will show as either ‘Recon Customer Support’, Recon News, Recon Events, Recon Store, Recon Support and Recon Sponsored Message.

All messages from Recon will never link to another members profile (in the way that all member originated messages do) .i.e. The ‘member’ name at the top of the message is not available for you to access, and there is no option to reply to them – the message reply window is always greyed out.

Here’s some common spam messages used on the internet:

A message that usually comes from a very attractive person asking to chat to you on Skype, Whatsapp, Yahoo Messenger or any other messenger platform, then once you contact them on that messenger platform they tell you that you can watch them on webcam for free on their webcam site, or to visit a link to view their free video, but you need to enter your credit card details for 'age verification'. Instead, you will get charged $50 or more. You should never enter your credit card details into a website you do not trust.

If the member’s profile is recently created, is empty of content, or the messages they send you just ‘feel strange’.

If you get a message or email suggesting, you have won a prize or money (e.g. “Official Award Team”, “Prize Award Office” etc... ) – even if it appears to come from a legitimate source, Often to be eligible you must send them your bank details, contact details or send them money to register. There is also often a suggestion that you will ‘miss out’ if you don’t respond, or that you have to ‘opt out’ by sending your details in response.

If you get a message or email offering you money for some kind of service from a person that you don’t even know.

If you get a message or even a new ‘friend’ asks you to send money for a visa, surgery or travel fare to come see you etc...

What you can do to be safer?

Never reply to spam - if you are unsure whether a message is genuine you can report the member by tapping the menu in the bottom right of the profile and tap ‘Report Member’.

What is this at the bottom of messages I receive from new members?

As it can sometimes take time for other members to report profiles that are used for spamming, and hence for us to suspend them, we have added a reminder on messages from newly created accounts that there is an increased possibility it may have been created for the purposes of spamming and that our members should exercise caution and use good common sense.